Video Ready to Share for October Faculty Forum: “Of Mics and Masks”
Dear Faculty Colleagues,
All of us are masked in the classroom this fall, and some of us are using microphones to compensate for the potential muffling, breathing, and projection challenges that accompany masks. For October’s Faculty Forum, titled “Of Mics and Masks,” we had a lively and informative discussion about the audio challenges that come with teaching while masked, teaching while capturing content, and teaching while some students are joining classes both remotely and synchronously. The recording is available for you to watch at your convenience.
Faculty participants discussed questions such as the following:
- What size class warrants use of a microphone?
- Where might one clip a portable microphone to be heard through one’s mask?
- How does one gauge student comprehension when we can’t see most of their faces?
- How do we visually express enthusiasm and empathy when students can’t see most of our faces?
- Should masked faculty use larger gestures?
- What additional challenges do hard-of-hearing students face when they cannot read the lips of their instructors or peers?
We heard from faculty teaching large, face-to-face classrooms, dynamic classroom performers, and masters at interactive teaching. Thanks also to classroom technology expert Virgil Castro for reminding us that the Classroom Hotline connects faculty to staff such as Virgil who can rush a solution, whether it involves a fixed mic or some replacement batteries, to whatever classroom is housing an immediately beleaguered member of our faculty. Contact the Classroom Hotline at 530-752-3333.
For additional perspectives, instructors may be interested in these tips for teaching with a mask from the University of Michigan and Wake Forest University, which are also linked from the "Transitioning to In-Person Teaching" page of the Keep Teaching website. See also "How to Communicate When Everyone Is Wearing a Mask" by Jeremy Adam Smith and Zaid Jilani.
Best,
Andy Jones
Academic Associate Director, Academic Technology Services
University of California, Davis